


we could all use a little change

by pirateygoodness



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/F, Friendship, Ice Cream, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-13
Updated: 2018-05-13
Packaged: 2019-05-06 01:43:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,794
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14631449
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pirateygoodness/pseuds/pirateygoodness
Summary: It makes Kara think about how lost she felt, when she left Krypton. It's different, she knows, but she also knows how much better things got when she didn't feel quite so alone.After three days of walking past Imra's sad eyes, passing her in the hallway looking like a ghost, Kara can't stand it anymore."Hey, Imra," she says. "Do they have ice cream in the future?"





	we could all use a little change

**Author's Note:**

> Just some soft superheroes from space gently starting to think about maybe sort of kind of falling in love with each other. Pretend that this diverges from canon after ep 3.17, but also pretend that magically Reign and the Worldkillers have been sorted. Enjoy the softness. 
> 
> (Also [falsealarm](http://falsealarm.tumblr.com/) kept talking to me about how sweet these two would be together so idk blame her.)

"-as they say, I'm a highly intelligent humanoid, not a time traveller." 

They both stare. It takes a moment for Brainy to correct himself, blink twice and try again. "My research with Agent Schott had suggested that perhaps couching the news within references to popular culture of the time might soften the blow of this news. I see now that I was incorrect." 

Mon-El understands first, the realization dawning on his face at the same time as Kara deciphers what Brainy's trying to say: "We're never going home," he clarifies. 

What Kara notices from this moment is nothing about how Mon-El reacted, or how Winn went to cheer him up. She doesn't notice Brainy or the way he's wringing his hands, fidgeting like having to deliver all of this makes him uncomfortable. She notices the way Imra's face falls, the way she looks so sad and stricken and puts a hand up to her chest, against her heart. 

Kara remembers the day she realized she was never going to see any of her friends and family on Krypton ever again, sees that exact feeling mirrored on Imra's face and Kara's whole heart aches for her. 

+

Imra mopes around the DEO for three full days. 

She stops living on the ship, talks to Alex and secures a temporary room, a converted DEO holding cell and it's absurd that she's living _there_ but being a telekinetic superhero from the future doesn't exactly pay a living wage.

Kara doesn't want to pry, because she's probably the last person Imra wants to talk to about all of this, now that things with Imra and Mon-El are - whatever they are right now. But she wants to help. Kara can't stop thinking about that look Imra got, when she found out she couldn't go home. 

It makes Kara think about how lost she felt, when she left Krypton. It's different, she knows, but she also knows how much better things got when she didn't feel quite so alone. 

After three days of walking past Imra's sad eyes, passing her in the hallway looking like a ghost, Kara can't stand it anymore.   
"Hey, Imra," she says. "Do they have ice cream in the future?"

\+ 

They do not, in fact, have ice cream in the future. 

Or they do, but it's somehow not made of cream and of course it makes sense, Imra's from Titan and of course there wouldn't be _cows_ there like they have on earth. But Kara still can't believe that Imra's never had ice cream, that she's been staying on Earth and working with Kara this whole time and the only local foods she's tried have been on the appetizer list at the alien bar. 

The first step is clothes. Imra's been wearing her tactical suit or DEO-issue workout gear for the past few months and it's only when Kara asks her about it that she realizes that's because Imra doesn't own anything else to wear. So they go to Kara's place - on the bus, and it's slow and inefficient but Kara tells Imra to pull the "request stop" rope and when the sign lights up it's the first time Kara's seen Imra smile in days, so it's more than worth it. 

Kara lends Imra a pair of jeans and a shirt; they both wear about the same size. Everything should fit, but Kara's still nervous as she waits in the kitchen for Imra to change. She fidgets with her coffee spoon from breakfast, twirling it back and forth between her fingers until she notices that it's in danger of bending. 

It's strange, seeing Imra in a shirt that Kara knows, her extra-soft long sleeved one with the pink and white stripes. Kara's jeans are a little too long, they fit around Imra's hips a little more snugly but it all fits. 

She looks great. Not that Kara ever doubted she would, Imra's a very attractive woman in any outfit, but it's just - different, seeing her in regular clothes. Something about it makes Kara feel sort of soft inside, almost possessive of the fact that she gets to see Imra like this first. "Am I wearing them correctly?" Imra asks. 

She adjusts the jeans around her waist, tugs at the sleeves a little, and her awkwardness tugs Kara back to the present. "Yeah, yeah you look - it's great."

Imra smiles again. Just a small one, more than a little sad around the edges, but it's a start. 

They walk to the ice cream store. Imra wears her workout shoes with the rest of her clothes and it's a bit of an odd look but it's alright. It's a weekend afternoon and they're going for ice cream; neither of them have to look perfect. 

They walk in silence at first, awkward and a bit tense rather than companionable. Imra's gone back to looking a little lost; her hands are shoved into the back pockets of her jeans - Kara's jeans - and she's looking a little downcast. They're waiting at a crosswalk, a few blocks in, when Imra takes a breath and forces her shoulders back. She looks like she's making a choice, deciding to be sociable. "So," she says. "Tell me about ice cream." 

"That I can do," Kara says. At least she thinks she can. But she tries a few different ways and all the ways she tries to describe it make it sound _gross_ , and she's on her third attempt trying to explain what custard is and she keeps getting distracted somewhere around the physics of distributed ice crystals making the texture creamy and it's just not working at all. Imra's making this face at her, frowning and smiling in disbelief at the same time, and it's making Kara's cheeks hot with embarrassment. Kara starts in on attempt number four before she gives up, says, "Just trust me."

Imra laughs and nudges Kara a little. "Now that, I already know how to do." 

It's still early spring and overcast, a bit cold for most people to be interested, so the ice cream shop is empty when they get there. It gives Kara plenty of time to pick out a flavour for herself (one scoop of maple walnut swirl and one scoop of chocolate in a waffle cone), and Imra just enough time to get overwhelmed by the wall of choices. Kara orders a single scoop of vanilla for her. "If you don't like it, we can always get another. That's the best thing about ice cream." 

"Right," Imra says. She's holding the cone a little uncertainly, keeping it safely at arms length. "How do you, um. Eat it?" 

Kara lifts her own cone up, licks gently along the bottom edge to catch the first few drips. It's _perfect_ , the closest she's come to approximating chocolate pecan pie in a cone, and for a moment she closes her eyes and just lets herself _taste._ She's so absorbed, she forgets about Imra. 

When she opens her eyes again, Imra's watching her with intensity, her cheeks a bit red as she shifts her gaze from Kara to her own ice cream. 

She ducks her head and mirrors Kara's movement, running her tongue along the base of the scoop to catch any drips and then licking up to the top. Her tongue comes away creamy-white and she closes her mouth and smiles, makes this happy little moaning sound. "Oh, it's very refreshing," she says. "I like it a lot." 

Kara giggles, goes back to working on her own ice cream. "I'm glad," she says around her next mouthful. 

They walk for a little while - looking for somewhere to sit, but their feet take them down the street and about ten blocks over to the path by the waterfront. Imra seems lighter, somehow. She's still eating her ice cream in thoughtful silence, and Kara's trying not to assign inappropriate adjectives but the words _dextrous_ and _deft_ keep floating to the front of her thoughts, in reference to Imra's tongue. 

Imra stops eating when she licks the top of her ice cream flat, level with the top of the cone. Kara notices, but it's not until a block later that she realizes what she's doing. "You eat it," Kara says. "The cone." 

Imra looks down at her hand, then at Kara, and makes the sweetest expression Kara's ever seen. It's incredulous, a little bewildered and warm and that grin just makes Kara feel so _light._ "I don't believe you," she finally says. 

Kara giggles, says, "I'll prove it." 

She's nearly done the top scoop of her ice cream, working her way down toward the cone, and with a few slightly less ladylike licks she gets to a place where she can work her teeth in and take a bite. She looks up at Imra and grins. "See?"

Imra balks. "How do I know that's not your Kryptonian constitution. I'm sure you can eat food wrapping for breakfast, lunch and dinner and be just fine." 

"It's not food wrapping, it's _food_ ," Kara says, nudges Imra's shoulder without thinking. 

Imra takes a few more steps before she breathes in, and takes a tentative bite of her cone. She eats it thoughtfully, eyeing Kara with this playful expression that makes Kara suddenly reach up to fuss with her hair a little bit. "Tastes edible," Imra jokes. "So far." 

"I promise, you'll live," Kara replies. 

They reach a bench near the water and sit. Kara stretches her legs, finishes her ice cream thoughtfully while the people and sea birds pass. Imra finishes her cone first, dabs at her fingers with the napkin previously wrapped around it. It's cute. Kara understands why Mon-El - she sees how Imra could be someone easy to fall in love with. 

"Thank you for this," Imra says after a while. 

Kara shrugs. "Don't worry about it. You can treat me next time."

(Next time, after Kara's had that meeting with Pam from HR about how silly it is that the DEO lets superheroes work for them without helping them get set up on Earth. She's already started some preliminary research on cost of living in National City and standard rates for hazard pay.)

Imra touches Kara's arm, her hand warm and soft. "No, I mean - thank you for trying to cheer me up. I appreciate it." 

"Earth isn't so bad. I've found a lot to love about it," Kara says. "But I understand wanting to go home, too." 

Imra's eyes suddenly go bright, tears welling up instantly and she scrubs at her face with her free hand, looking toward the sky. Kara's heart aches for her all over again. She slides Imra's hand down her arm, until they're palm to palm. 

Imra holds on tight, as hard as she can. Kara holds right back.


End file.
